In 21 years of preaching I have been asked this question many times. Members notice that a certain brother or sister hasn‟t been around for a few weeks or even months and they ask the obvious question, “What happened to so and so...?”

Unfortunately the most frequent reply I give is that they have abandoned the assembly. For various reasons, including ones of privacy, I can‟t give reasons why many have left. Nevertheless, please realize that whatever the reasons, they fall into the following main categories:

1. People were not willing to pay the price for being Christians such as making the necessary sacrifices to remain faithful (ie. give up certain sins or friends).
2. They couldn‟t overcome certain sins because they continually made wrong choices in the face of temptation, or refused to repent of their sins.
3. They allowed to world to smother them as these things took over their lives.
4. They lost their faith as they abandoned the things that build faith. Things like Bible reading, prayer, fellowship and activities with other Christians.
5. They‟ve taken many poor decisions that resulted in separating them from God to the point that they feel it impossible to return to Him.

As you can see, no one abandons the church by accident. It is usually a long road where God, in His goodness, gives us several warnings. Many refuse to listen to these and are eventually lost. Be careful of these things so that you will not lose your way as well as your soul.

Don‟t act in such a way that people will say, “Whatever happened to...?” and this sentence ends with your name.